Origin, birthplace, nationality and language of the Canadian people

Bibliographic data

Monograph

Identifikator:: 1794974814

URN:: urn:nbn:de:zbw-retromon-182133

Document type:: Monograph

Title:: Origin, birthplace, nationality and language of the Canadian people

Place of publication:: Ottawa

Publisher:: Acland

Year of publication:: 1929

Scope:: 224 S.; Diagramme

Digitisation:: 2022

Collection:: Economics Books

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Chapter

Document type:: Monograph

Structure type:: Chapter

Title:: Chapter VII. The naturalization of immigrant peoples

Collection:: Economics Books

THE RATE OF NATURALIZATION AMONG IMMIGRANT STOCKS 157 Canada in 1921 by date of arrival and country of birth. At the foot of the table will also be found the percentages for specified groups of countries of birth. These have been compiled from the census table showing the actual numbers for the separate nationalities. The data are grouped into four periods of arrival. The figures for separate years were not available, so in the chart which presents the material in graphic form it was necessary to choose some date within each period at which the percentage might most fittingly be plotted. For the first two periods the middle point was chosen in all cases, that is, for the periods 1919 to June, 1921, and 1915 to 1918 inclusive. The error in following that procedure was considered unimportant, first, because the immigration laws make comparisons invalid as between many of the groups of immigrants arriving during those years and secondly, because those years are relatively unimportant from the standpoint of actual numbers coming to Canada. For the periods 1911 to 1914 and 1901 to 1910, the yearly immigration figures were examined for each country of birth and the date was found at which half of those coming within each period had arrived. The percentages were plotted in each case at the point so determined. Immigration figures for individual countries of birth were not avail- able prior to 1897, so it was impossible to follow the same procedure for those classed as arriving prior to 1901. The only alternative was to arbitrarily choose some date and apply it to all. The date chosen was January 1, 1895 Of course, in many cases that may be wide of the mark, but two or three years make little difference to naturalization after settlers have been in the country more than two decades. Such an assumption, therefore, is sufficiently accurate for the present purpose. The data so charted appear on the semi-logarithmic Chart 29. For those who are familiar with interpreting graphs of this kind the following comments will be unnecessary. The meaning and implication of the curves will be seen at a glance. However, the follow- ing explanations may not be out of place. Chart 29 shows the percentage naturalized of specified immigrants in Canada in 1921, by length of residence.” The fact that the curves ascend from left to right indicates that larger percentages are naturalized of those who have been in the country for a greater length of time than obtain for the recent arrivals. Approximately the same proportion naturalized is shown for present residents who arrived in Canada prior to 1901 from North Western Europe as for those from South, Eastern and Central Europe, but of the immigrants who have come between 1901 and 1919, considerably larger proportions of the North Western Europeans have naturalized than of immigrants from the South, Bastern and Central parts of the continent. Since 1919, the record shows that large numbers of women and children have come from Slavic countries to join their husbands and fathers. The same does not hold for the Germanic and Scandinavian countries, so the percentage naturalized for the South, Eastern and Central European group appears higher than for the North Western European group in recent years. That fact, however, is purely accidental. It may be said that, as a group, the South, Eastern and Central Europeans have naturalized less readily than those from North Western Europe. yet the unqualified statement is misleading. Further light is thrown on the subject by an examination of the language classification. Of the linguistic groups the Scandinavians have naturalized most rapidly, and it is very significant that next to the Scandinavians, the Slavs show the greatest speed in becoming Canadian citizens. They naturalize more rapidly than the Germanic immigrants, and did so even before the war was in sight. Actually higher percentages of the Slavs who arrived before 1911 and were still resident in Canada in 1921, had been naturalized by that date than occurred for the immigrants from the Germanic countries as a group. Of all four linguistic groups of Europe the immigrants from the Latin and Greek countries are the slowest to naturalize, and a large proportion of them never paturalize at all. The latter applies especially to the Italians and Greeks, who, as we have seen, are essentially urban people. It is largely due to their inclusion that the South, Eastern and Central Europeans as a group appeared averse to naturalization. The Roumanians are quite different: thev are

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